CEL Course Designation

Utah State University was one of 359 schools to receive the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching’s Community Engagement Classification in 2020 — the highest level of recognition for community engagement in higher education.

As a land-grant institution, USU has always been committed to serving the public through learning, discovery, and engagement. Our Community-Engaged Learning (or CEL) courses bridge the gap between student and faculty scholars and community organizations to make both stronger and pave the way for lifetimes of civically aware leaders, both locally and abroad.

If you are interested in learning more, stay up to date on important CEL course designation dates. You, too, can reap the benefits of community-engaged learning, as you teach students at USU when you apply through Service Now to become a CEL Designated Course instructor.

Utah State University, as a land-grant institution, has a proud history of serving the public through learning, discovery, and engagement, and our faculty has been instrumental in upholding this mission by incorporating Community-Engaged Learning (CEL) into course curriculum.

Community-Engaged Learning is a teaching and learning strategy that integrates meaningful community engagement with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, and strengthen communities.

When you partner the Center for Community Engagement, you have access to meetings and/or retreats to learn more and spread awareness, attend ETE sessions, Engaged Faculty Retreat.

From enriching the learning experience, teaching civic responsibility, and strengthening communities, students apply knowledge and skills gained through their courses in the real world while addressing community needs, creating mutually beneficial relationships that improve learning experiences, prompt meaningful classroom reflection and discussion, and aid local governments, nonprofits, and the common good.

Here are some of the benefits for each of you, your students, and community partners:

Faculty

The community-engaged approach also curates a more interactive and inclusive classroom atmosphere in which students are more valued and heard.

• Potential new avenues for research and publication
• Promoting students' active learning; engaging students with different learning styles
• Developing students' civic and leadership skills
• Boosting course enrollment by attracting highly motivated and engaged students
• Providing networking opportunities with engaged faculty in other disciplines
• Fostering relationships between faculty and community organizations, which can open other opportunities for collaborative work
• Curate a more interactive and inclusive classroom atmosphere in which students are more valued and heard.

Students

Students gain a more adaptable skill set by engaging in experiential and community-based learning, better preparing them for post-graduation.

• Students experience a deeper connection to class content by encouraging students to apply their classroom knowledge to a real-world setting.
• Students work alongside our strongest community leaders and can expand their professional networks and potential career paths.
• Students grow their intercultural understanding and values by having the opportunity to work in diverse communities and settings.

Community Partners

By engaging students into the organization, students are not only impacted personally but are able to contribute to the overall impact of the organization by increasing awareness, helping work towards the mission, and by expanding necessary human resources.

• Organizations can develop and strengthen relationships with the Utah State University staff/faculty.
• Provide civic mentorship opportunities for tomorrow’s leaders.
• Engaging young people in an organization’s mission helps build future stability and curate wider perspectives within the organization itself.

There are three required components of a Community-Engaged Learning-designated course that you should consider while designing a course and syllabus: Community-Focused Learning, Meaningful Engagement, and Reflection.

Here are some ways to work these components into your syllabus for a meaningful semester:

• A community engagement project to advance course objectives, address real, identified community needs, and involve meaningful student interaction with the community partner.
• A project/engagement assists in developing students’ awareness of communities.
• Explain the scope and objectives of the community project and how student learning will be evaluated.
• Provide structured opportunities for students to analyze the community engagement experience, connect it to the subject matter of the course, and consider the project in the broader context of civic engagement and social responsibility.
• Meets with community partner in the planning stages of the course, when appropriate, to establish common goals, timelines, project assessment, and closure activities.

Learning

Community-engaged learning is tied directly to course material and the knowledge gained from that course material. Learning outcomes must be identified to ensure the link between the course material and community engagement is clearly understood. Through community-engaged learning, students not only apply course material, but also learn valuable skills such as teamwork, communication, and critical thinking.

Courses are now designated as Community-Engaged Learning (CEL) in Banner. Before courses can be listed as CEL, faculty must complete a short designation form outlining the learning outcomes, service activity, reflection, and course information. Submitted forms are reviewed by the Community-Engaged Learning Advisory Board and can be approved at any time.

Prior to completing a designation form, we highly recommend checking in with the Center for Community Engagement for support identifying a community partner or service activity appropriate for your course.

Meaningful Engagement

Community-engaged learning is not adding “volunteer” activities to a course. Rather, it is integrating community engagement so students can apply the knowledge and skills they are learning in class to meet real community needs. The community-engaged activity/project is incorporated as part of the “out-of-class” work expected of each student registered in the course. Student learning is graded, and impact is measured through structured reflection and assessment activities.

Reflection

Reflection is an essential element of a CEL course. It is a structured time for students to recount their experiences and the learning acquired in the community setting. It can be accomplished in a number of ways, depending on instructor preference. Some common forms of reflection include journal entries with prompts, reflection papers, class presentations, or facilitated small-group discussions.